THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, July 31, 1994 TAG: 9407290275
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 21 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Cover Story
LENGTH: Medium: 52 lines
Gerald S. Divaris is considered the visionary leader of the Central Business District.
Divaris, a native of Rhodesia who had lived in South Africa, moved to Virginia Beach 12 years ago and has a large financial stake in developing the 38 acres he owns in the Pembroke area.
He founded Divaris Real Estate in 1974 in Cape Town, and moved to the United States six years later, living at first in California before moving to Virginia Beach. Since then, Divaris has stayed active.
Divaris, 45, is president of Divaris Real Estate, a commercial, industrial, retail office and residential real estate brokerage company with offices in Virginia Beach, Norfolk, on the Peninsula and in Los Angeles. He is also president and limited partner of Williamsburg's Port Anne residential community; president of Virginia Beach Executive Suites, which manages One Columbus Center; and president of Divaris Realty of Virginia, a general partner in Columbus Center Associates.
He is also chairman of the Divaris Real Estate Group, with interests in Europe and Africa; and president of Realty Resources Inc., a network of independent property brokers and managers serving 55 U.S. markets.
When Divaris first viewed Virginia Beach and its Pembroke area, he wasn't particularly impressed.
``It was rather poor quality development,'' said Divaris, noting that much of the local landscape was ``low rise, ugly, not much landscaping, dumpsters and air conditioning units sticking out all over everywhere.''
Clearly, he thought to himself, the area was ``underdeveloped,'' but could provide a ``lot of benefits'' if it were brought along the proper way.
Pembroke, he said, needed to generate more customers, plus maintain a constant state of safety and security, and most of all, it had to have vitality - unlike downtown Norfolk, he added, which is only 20 minutes away from Pembroke and becomes a ghost town after 5 p.m.
Divaris and his wife, Anna, live in Linkhorn Point. They have two children, Alexander, 17, and Maria, 14, both of whom attend Norfolk Academy. ILLUSTRATION: Photo
Gerald Divaris
Promote safety and vitality
KEYWORDS: PROFILE
by CNB